Gongsun Chou asks Mencius to simplify the lofty Way for ordinary people. Mencius refuses to lower moral standards, comparing teachers to skilled craftsmen. He uses heuristic teaching, holding the Middle Way for capable learners to follow.
Mencius lists five teaching approaches for gentlemen: transformative timely rain influence, nurturing virtue, developing talents, answering queries, and remote self-study inspired by a master’s legacy, covering diverse forms of tailored education.
Mencius differentiates two mourning cases. Those who voluntarily cut mourning deserve rebuke; those blocked by rules to observe full rites merit praise for any mourning they can manage, embodying flexible moral judgment.
Mencius states merely feeding others without affection is like raising pigs; affection without respect equals keeping beasts. Genuine respect precedes gifts; hollow polite formalities without sincerity cannot bind a true gentleman.
Prince Dian asks scholars’ core pursuit. Mencius answers elevating aspirations, rooted in benevolence and righteousness. Never kill innocents or seize others’ goods; dwell in benevolence and walk righteously to fulfill a noble person’s mission.